Lansing, Mich. – Aug. 14, 2019 – Dean Transportation, Hoekstra Transportation and Thomas Built Buses today celebrated their collaboration to provide school buses to local Michigan communities at a back-to-school event held in Lansing. Together, they showed their commitment to the local community by featuring new school buses and shared school bus safety tips with local school children.
Beginning this fall, Lansing School District and Grand Rapids Public Schools will begin the school year with a total of 20 brand-new Thomas Built Buses school buses equipped with Detroit® DD5™ engines. These new school buses feature state-of-the-art technologies to offer safe, fuel efficient, and highly connected transportation for young students, and all come with a unique relationship to Michigan communities.
Dean Transportation, Hoekstra Transportation and Thomas Built Buses’ sister brand Detroit worked together to offer buses to local Michigan schools. With the latest in engine technology, the new Saf-T-Liner® C2 school buses are fuel-efficient and equipped with advanced engine telematics that offer peace of mind to transportation directors and parents alike.
The benefit of the buses’ functionality is complemented by the benefit all three companies have on Michigan communities. The workhorse of the Saf-T-Liner C2, the Detroit DD5 engine, is built in Redford, Michigan. Dean Transportation of Lansing, Michigan has provided specialized transportation services in the state for more than 50 years, while Hoekstra Transportation of Grand Rapids, Michigan has a 91-year history of serving the region with transportation solutions.
With the latest in engine technology, the new DD5-equipped Saf-T-Liner C2 school buses are fuel-efficient and offer lower operating costs. With advanced engine telematics they also offer peace of mind to transportation directors and parents alike.
“We believe that the best way to help a community is to be a productive part of it, and we are doing just that this school year. We are extremely proud to operate buses with engines made right here in Michigan,” said Patrick Dean, vice president of Dean Transportation. “We’ve worked with Thomas Built Buses’ local Michigan dealer, Hoekstra Transportation, for the past five decades. These new buses are providing quality transportation to students, plus they are fueling the economy and providing jobs for local drivers and plant employees in the Michigan area.”
“Together we are all celebrating this purchase as we kick off a new school year,” said Caley Edgerly, president and CEO of Thomas Built Buses. “As a native Michigander, I am proud that these Thomas Built buses will employ workers in Redford as well as drivers and technicians across the state.”
“We value our partnerships with our customers and are thankful we have the ability to provide them with safe and reliable transportation,” said Mark Hoekstra, president and CEO of Hoekstra Transportation. “These new buses feature cutting-edge technologies that will allow Dean Transportation and our other school bus partners to transport children with care, and because they are buying local, together it allows us to serve local communities in numerous ways.”
